Article
A qualitative study on the perspective of nursing home managers of the COVID-19 pandemic
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Authors
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Anna Louisa Hoffmann
- German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Witten, Germany; Witten/Herdecke University (UW/H), Faculty of Health, School of Nursing Science, Witten, Germany
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Sonja Teupen
- German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Witten, Germany
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Martina Roes
- German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Witten, Germany; Witten/Herdecke University (UW/H), Faculty of Health, School of Nursing Science, Witten, Germany
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Bernhard Holle
- German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Witten, Germany; Witten/Herdecke University (UW/H), Faculty of Health, School of Nursing Science, Witten, Germany
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Franziska Laporte Uribe
- German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Witten, Germany; Witten/Herdecke University (UW/H), Faculty of Health, School of Nursing Science, Witten, Germany
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Rebecca Palm
- German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Witten, Germany; Witten/Herdecke University (UW/H), Faculty of Health, School of Nursing Science, Witten, Germany
| Published: | July 5, 2021 |
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Outline
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Background: Managers in nursing homes play a crucial role in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in residential care. How they experience and deal with this challenge has not yet been investigated for Germany.
Objectives: The study investigates how managers in nursing homes perceive the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their nursing homes.
Design and methods: A qualitative descriptive design was used. The sample comprised 134 participants from different nursing homes in Germany. Telephone interviews with an interview guide were conducted with nursing home managers, administrators and care unit managers. Data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis according to Kuckartz [1]. This study is part of a cross-sectional national survey-study with a randomized sample to develop a typology of care units, funded by the German Research Foundation (project number: 430919791).
Results: Managers in nursing homes are in a balancing act between two perceived responsibilities: complying with protective measures while maintaining resident self- determination. They see themselves as responsible and they are held responsible by others to protect the nursing home from COVID-19. This feeling of responsibility is influenced by uncertainty in the case of inaccurate external regulations and their perceived degree of competence to implement these regulations. They discuss the aim of preventing a COVID-19 outbreak as a potential risk to the self-determination of the residents.
Conclusions: Most managers in nursing homes feel deserted in their responsibilities. They need (1) consistent and clear instructions on how to protect their nursing home during COVID-19, and (2) more staff to ensure residents’ self-determination.
Funding: This study is part of a cross-sectional national survey-study with a randomized sample to develop a typology of care units, funded by the German Research Foundation (project number: 430919791).
References
- 1.
- Kuckartz U. Qualitative Text Analysis: A Guide to Methods, Practice and Using Software 1st ed. London, California, New Dehli, Singapore: SAGE Publications; 2014.
